Ledford writes like he’s thrown his sack onto a fair number passenger cars. His land is the “Old Weird America” Griel Marcus wrote so emotively about. Ledford stories seldom end with a hero on the proverbial mountaintop. His narratives are typically told by the losers, those close to the edge, in the grandest sense. This latest record puts him in front of a microphone, sans accompaniment, where he pours out live-sounding interpretations of his own music, which while not your Daddy’s folk, has one foot planted firmly either side of Cripple Creek. Adios King represents Ledford’s most accomplished work, which at its peak stands shoulder to shoulder with that of modern Americana luminaries as Gillian Welch, Patty Griffin, and the like. His time oughtta come. - 9X magazine, Richmond, VA

Adios King is a collection of songs performed by Louis Ledford accompanied by his guitar, banjo and harmonica. The seeds of Adios King were sown while recording 2004’s Reverie, when producer Bob Rupe suggested that the tracks with Ledford playing alone were some of the record’s best. The album’s title refers to a eulogy reputedly spoken by writer Jack Kerouac when informed of the death of Neal Cassady. Ledford discovered the quote in a Rolling Stone magazine he found while cleaning out the cottage he would call home in New Orleans after the hurricanes Katrina and Rita.
Louis Ledford was born in Richmond, Virginia of parents whose lineage reaches back to rural Southwestern Virginia and the Smokey Mountains in North Carolina. His musical education began with a few chords taught to him on a guitar by his country music loving stepfather and has continued as a life long fascination of matching words to those chords, plus a few others. His forthright, Southern tales match the songwriting craftsmanship of a Kris Kristofferson with the rolling Piedmont fingerpicking style exemplified by Etta Baker. Practitioner of the “no metaphor” school of songwriting, Ledford’s subjects, often centered around the effects of poverty on the human spirit, paint unforgettable portraits that insinuate themselves in your memory.
Adios King's 13 original songs, 10 by Ledford and 2 by Louisiana artist/songwriter Gina Phillips, were engineered and produced by Bob Rupe, a founding member of the influential roots rock band The Silos.
Louis Ledford is a member of the Tin Pan Caravan, with fellow songwriters Anais Mitchell, Robert Blake and Rachel Ries, and continues to tour as a solo performer playing venues, house concerts, and festivals.

1. Porchlight
2. You've Been Had / Free at Last
3. Stock Car Angels #1
4. Cup of Strong Black Coffee
5. Evangeline
6. Montreal
7. I Never Said
8. Little Red Britches
9. When You Fall
10. Stock Car Angels #2
11. TreeBranch and Moonlight
12. So Long
13. Everything is Clear